Paul's return gives Clippers a lift against Wizards

Clippers guard Jamal Crawford gets a hand on a shot by Wizards forward Trevor Ariza during the first half Saturday. MARK J. TERRILL, THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

LOS ANGELES – The Clippers haven't been whole once this season, but they're getting closer.

With Chris Paul back after a three-game hiatus, the Clippers hung on to beat the Washington Wizards, 94-87, on Saturday night at Staples Center.

Paul, who didn't play on the Clippers' previous trip because of a bruised right kneecap, had a key assist to Blake Griffin and a step-back jumper in the final two minutes, helping keep the Wizards from pulling off the upset.

Paul finished with a team-high 22 points and 11 assists as the Clippers won their fourth in a row.

Chauncey Billups is the Clippers' only regular rotation player who still is injured.

"We still don't know what our team is going to look like come playoff time," Paul said.

Even with more pieces on the floor, nothing came easy for the Clippers. They struggled on the offensive end, shooting 36.6 percent.

Paul, Griffin and Jamal Crawford — the Clippers' top three scorers — made only 14 of 47 shots (29.8 percent).

"That's bad," Crawford said. "We'll be better, I swear."

The Clippers, though, had a plus-15 rebound advantage.

John Wall led Washington with 24 points, but the Wizards shot only 41.6 percent from the field and turned the ball over 18 times.

"We didn't shoot the basketball very well tonight. That's for sure," Clippers coach Vinny Del Negro said. "We had to rely on our defense and rebounding."

BLEDSOE GETS NOTICED

When Paul was out, the Clippers handed the keys to their offense to Eric Bledsoe, and he responded during the victorious three-game trip.

The increased playing time cemented Bledsoe's place as the team's most prized asset not named Paul or Griffin.

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